Márquez starts Catalunya home race from pole position

Team CatalunyaCaixa Repsol’s Marc Márquez will start tomorrow’s Gran Premi Aperol de Catalunya from pole position after setting the fastest lap in qualifying practice ahead of Pol Espargaró and Tom Lüthi.

Following some very subdued practice sessions, local hero Márquez silenced any doubters with a hot lap of 1.46’187 to claim the 25th pole position of his career. Just under two tenths behind was Pons 40 HP Tuenti’s Pol Espargaró, making it a Spanish one-two on the front row. Rounding out the front row is Interwetten-Paddock’s pace-setter of yesterday, Tom Lüthi, who looked to be struggling just slightly in the very hot conditions.

Starting from fourth is Speed Master’s Andrea Iannone, in front of compatriot Simone Corsi. Corsi, who is one of the few FTR riders with his Came IodaRacing Project team, was a surprise inclusion at the front, after there had been doubts about the bike’s competitiveness. Technomag-CIP’s Dominique Aegerter consolidated a solid weekend with sixth.

Heading the third row is Marc VDS Racing Team’s Scott Redding, who will be disappointed with his time after being the pace-man this morning. Redding was too late to put in a final run, as he took the chequered flag just as he was to embark on his final lap. He sits in front of Mapfre Aspar’s Toni Elías, who showed a marked improvement over previous sessions. The third row is completed by Espargaró’s teammate Esteve Rabat.

The top ten is completed by NGM Mobile Forward Racing’s Alex de Angelis, while Tech 3 Racing’s stand-in rider Jordi Torres recorded a terrific 11th place on his first outing for the team.

It was a miserable session for Blusens Avintia’s Julián Simón who once again crashed out, yet walked away unhurt. Another incident saw Arguiñano Racing Team’s Ricky Cardús crash out after Italtrans Racing Team’s Takaaki Nakagami pulled in front of the Spanish rider. Cardús was unhurt in the crash, while Nakagami only suffered some bike damage.